Tina Knowles-Lawson has definitely been on her A-game. She's been dedicated to holding space for empowering conversations with notable figures in entertainment—first with her recently launched Facebook Watch series Talks With Mama Tina and now with Profiled: The Black Man, a new limited docuseries in conjunction with Discovery+ and OWN. Through a dynamic mixture of historical footage, real-life testimony, and commentary from an array of renowned thought leaders, the four-part documentary examines the origins of the widespread stereotypes that have impacted the lives of Black men in America for centuries.
In addition to Knowles-Lawson's work as an executive producer of the series, she will also offer her own reflections alongside featured commentary from notable community members such as civil rights activist DeRay Mckesson, activist Tamika Mallory, hip-hop culture icon Sway Calloway and the award-winning performer Billy Porter.
"The depictions we constantly see of Black men frequently minimizes the depth of who they are. Society has characterized Black men by stories told through biased and racially tinted lenses,” said Knowles-Lawson. “Profiled: The Black Men is a love letter to Black men telling them we see them and that they deserve to exist in this world in their fullness. I am excited to lend my voice to reshaping the way our men are perceived and shining a light on the true essence of the Black men that I encounter every day."
Actor Tristan “Mack” Wilds will host the limited series while guiding the audience through each episode to aid in dismantling long-standing stereotypes about Black men. T
The docuseries will be produced by A. Smith & Co. Productions with P. Frank Williams as showrunner. Tina Knowles-Lawson and Trell Thomas serve as executive producers, and Kristen V. Carter as co-executive producer.
“For most of my life, I’ve always had to wonder how people saw me and constantly have felt like I was fighting an uphill battle based on many of the negative stereotypes that surround me and people that look like me,” said Thomas. “I wanted to create this series in order to give Black men a voice and the power to write our own narrative and tell our own stories.”
The series will premiere on Saturday, February 12, exclusively on Discovery+, with new one-hour episodes available to discovery+ subscribers every Saturday through March 5.
